Isolation of A Protein Responsible For Uranium (VI) Reduction

ABSTRACT

The present invention relates to the isolation and characterization of a protein responsible for the reduction of uranium (VI) to uranium (IV). The present invention extends to the use of the isolated protein in the reduction of uranium (VI) to uranium (IV) and further extends to a process for the bioremediation, or at least partial remediation, of a site contaminated with a source of U (VI). According to a first aspect thereof, the present invention provides an isolated polypeptide derived from  Thermus scotoductus  strain SA-01 that is responsible for the reduction of uranium (VI), in a source of uranium (VI), to uranium (IV), wherein the polypeptide comprises the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID No: 1.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention relates to the isolation and characterization of aprotein responsible for the reduction of uranium (VI) to uranium (IV).The present invention extends to the use of the isolated protein in thereduction of uranium (VI) to uranium (IV) and further extends to aprocess for the bioremediation, or at least partial remediation, of asite contaminated with a source of U (VI).

BACKGROUND TO THE INVENTION

In the past decade, our concept of what conditions are compatible withlife, have changed significantly. The earlier, anthropocentric view ofnature has limited our capacity to access new microbes and theirgenomes, but the discovery that almost all environments on earth andeven the subsurface (more than 4 km), or subzero temperatures and highlevels of radiation are likely to contain specially adapted life forms,has made the notion to understand the microbial biodiversity veryimportant.

One of the most amazing features of the microbial world is that even themost toxic and apparently recalcitrant of substances developed by(chemical) industry over the decades usually prove to be degradable byone micro-organism or another. Microorganisms can encounter a largevariety of chemicals such as metals in contaminated environments, thusit is not surprising that they would interact with these metals (Niesand Sliver, 1995).

U (VI) resistant bacteria isolated from contaminated environments havebeen shown to possess the ability to successfully remove toxic U (VI)from the environment by either reduction (generally by bacteria) orbiosorption (usually by fungi) (van Heerden et al., 2008).

Recently, the microbial reduction of metals has attracted interest asthese transformations can play crucial roles in the cycling of bothinorganic and organic species and therefore have opened up new andexciting areas of research with potential practical application(Anderson et al., 1998; Rooney-Varga et al., 1999; Lovley and Lloyd,2000; Anderson et al., 2003; Lovley et al., 2004). Dissimilatory metalreducing bacteria (DMRB) have been shown to gain energy to supportanaerobic growth by coupling the oxidation of H₂ or organic matter tothe reduction of a variety of multivalent metals. This metabolism canlead to the complete mineralization of organic matter or to theprecipitation and immobilization of metal contaminants under anaerobicconditions (Sani et al., 2002).

For the bioremediation of uranium contaminated sites, the chemistry ofthe element offers an approach that has received much attention in thelast 20 years. The oxidation state of uranium is crucial to itsstability, mobility and bioavailability. The oxidized or hexavalent,(VI), state of uranium is highly soluble and therefore mobile, while thereduced or tetravalent, (IV), state is relatively insoluble. In waste,uranium is present primarily as soluble salts of the uranyl ion (UO₂²⁺). When the uranyl ion is reduced from the U (VI) oxidation state to alower oxidation state such as U (IV), the solubility decreases and itbecomes immobilized.

The list of bacteria known in the art to reduce U (VI) is growing. WhenThermus scotoductus SA-01 is incubated anaerobically with U (VI), U (VI)will precipitate out of solution indicating that Thermus scotoductusSA-01 has the ability to reduce U (VI). Studies have also shown thatThermus scotoductus SA-01 has the ability to reduce almost 100% of a0.25 mM U (VI) solution under anaerobic conditions with lactate as anelectron donor in less than 30 hours (van Heerden et al., 2008).

However, very little is known about the mechanisms involved in U (VI)reduction and the proteins involved in these mechanisms and accordinglyconclusive evidence as to which protein(s) are responsible for uraniumreduction is still lacking.

For purposes of the present specification, “polypeptide” is understoodas meaning peptides or proteins which comprise two or more amino acidsbonded via peptide bonds.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

According to a first aspect thereof, the present invention provides anisolated polypeptide derived from Thermus scotoductus strain SA-01 thatis responsible for the reduction of uranium (VI), in a source of uranium(VI), to uranium (IV), wherein the polypeptide comprises the amino acidsequence of SEQ ID No: 1.

The isolated polypeptide is characterized in that it is a homogenousprotein, having a molecular mass of 70 kDa, as shown by SDS-PAGE gelanalysis.

The invention further provides for the isolated polypeptide to be apeptide ABC transporter, peptide-binding protein, as revealed by NCBIBLASTP analysis.

The Applicant believes that the isolated polypeptide identified hereinis capable of performing more than one function, namely that of apeptide ABC transporter, peptide-binding protein and that of uraniumreductase. Such proteins are commonly referred to in the art as“moonlighting proteins”.

The isolated polypeptide identified herein possesses a disulphide bond,which when cleaved by a reducing agent, supplies a nucleation site for U(VI) reduction.

According to a second aspect thereof, the present invention providesisolated nucleic acid molecules coding for the amino acid sequence ofSEQ ID No: 1 comprising a nucleotide sequence of SEQ ID No: 2.

For ease of reference, the amino acid sequence and nucleotide sequencereferred to in this description and contained in the sequence listingfiled herewith are also set out below. The underlined amino acids setforth in SEQ ID No: 1 represent the N-terminal amino acid sequence whichwas used to identify the polypeptide as a peptide ABC transporter,peptide-binding protein.

SEQ ID No: 1-MetArgLysValGlyLysLeuAlaValPheGlyLeuAlaAlaLeuGlyLeuAlaLeuAlaGlyProGlnAspAsnSerLeuValIleGlyAlaSerGlnGluProArgValLeuAlaGlyAspPheLeuSerIleIleSerAsnGInSerIleLysLeuGluIleGluGlnTyrLeuPheAlaProLeuIleGlyPheAsnAlaAsnSerGluAsnPheProValLeuValThrGluValProThrArgGlnAsnGlyArgLeuArgValThrAspIleGlyGlyGlyLysLysArgLeuGluMetAspLeuThrIleArgProAspAlaArgTrpSerAspGlyLysProIleThrThrGluAspValAlaPheTyrTyrGluValGlyLysAlaLysGlyMetProValLeuAsnProAspTyrTrpGluArgValAsnLeuArgValArgAspAlaArgAsnPheThrValIlePheGluProAlaTyrTyrTyrAspThrTyrGlyGlyThrTyrGlySerProIleGlyTyrAlaProLysHisIleMetGlyAlaGluTrpGluLysValLysAlaAlaAlaArgAsnLeuAspProAspLysAspAlaGluArgLeuAsnGluLeuTyrArgAsnPhePheLeuLysPheAlaThrProGlnAlaLeuAsnArgGlyAlaMetValTyrSerGlyAlaPheLysLeuArgArgTrpValProGlyAsnSerIleGluMetGluArgAsnProAsnPheProIleLysProGluGlyGlyGluSerArgTyrValGlnArgValValTyrArgPheIleGlnAsnThrAsnSerLeuLeuValAlaValLeuGlyGlySerIleAspAlaThrSerSerValSerLeuThrPheAspGlnGlyArgSerArgGlnLeuThrSerArgAlaProGlyArgPheAspIleTrpPheValProGlyAlaIleTrpGluHisIleAspValAsnLysPheGluAsnCysGlnAlaValArgAspLeuGlyLeuAsnAspValArgThrArgArgAlaLeuLeuHisAlaLeuAsnArgGluGlyLeuValLysAlaPhePheAspGlyLeuGlnProValAlaHisThrTrpIleAlaProValAsnProLeuPheAsnProAsnValArgLysTyrGluPheAspLeuLysLysAlaGluAlaLeuLeuAlaGluMetGlyTrpArgLysGlyProAspGlyIleLeuGlnArgThrValGlyGlyArgThrValArgPheGluIleGluPheValThrThrAlaGlyAsnAlaIleArgGluArgThrGlnGlnPhePheAlaGluAspLeuLysLysIleGlyIleAlaValLysIleAsnAsnAlaProSerAlaValValPheAlaAspAspTyrIleGlnArgAlaSerGluCysLysTrpThrGlyLeuPheGluPheAlaTrpValSerAsnLeuAlaGluAspGlySerLeuPheGlnTyrLysAsnLeuAsnThrGlyAlaIleMetValProThrLysGluAsnAsnTyrGlnGlyGlnAsnIleGlyGlyTrpArgAsnAspGluPheAspArgLeuThrSerGlnGlyValLeuGluPheAspGluAlaArgArgLysGlnLeuPheTrpArgAlaGlnGluIleTrpAlaGluGluLeuProAlaLeuProLeuTyrPheArgAlaAsnProTyrValValArgLysGlyLeuValAsnTyrValAlaSerAlaTyrAlaGlyGlyTyrGlyTyrProGlyTrpAsnAlaTrpGluIleGlyTrpGluSerArgGlyAlaValLysLysTrpAspGlnAlaLysTyrAlaLeuSerValLys SEQ ID No: 2-ATGAGAAAAGTAGGCAAGCTGGCTGTATTCGGTTTAGCCGCCCTGGGCTTGGCCCTGGCGGGGCCCCAGGACAACAGCCTGGTCATAGGGGCTTCGCAGGAGCCCCGGGTTCTGGCGGGGGACTTCCTAAGCATCATCTCCAACCAGTCCATCAAGTTGGAGATCGAGCAGTACCTCTTCGCCCCCCTCATCGGTTTCAACGCCAACAGCGAAAACTTTCCCGTGCTGGTCACCGAGGTGCCCACCCGGCAAAACGGGCGTTTGCGGGTGACGGACATCGGCGGGGGCAAGAAGCGCTTGGAGATGGACCTCACCATCCGGCCCGATGCCCGCTGGTCCGACGGCAAGCCCATCACCACCGAGGATGTGGCCTTCTACTACGAGGTGGGCAAGGCCAAGGGGATGCCGGTGCTCAACCCGGACTACTGGGAGCGGGTGAACCTCCGGGTCAGGGACGCCCGCAACTTCACCGTGATCTTTGAGCCCGCCTACTACTACGACACCTACGGCGGCACCTACGGCTCCCCCATCGGCTACGCTCCCAAGCACATCATGGGCGCCGAGTGGGAGAAGGTGAAAGCGGCGGCCCGGAACCTGGATCCCGATAAGGATGCGGAGAGGCTCAACGAGCTCTACCGCAACTTCTTCCTCAAGTTCGCCACTCCCCAGGCCCTAAACCGGGGAGCCATGGTCTACTCGGGGGCCTTCAAGCTGCGGCGCTGGGTGCCGGGGAACTCCATTGAGATGGAGCGGAACCCCAACTTCCCCATCAAGCCCGAGGGTGGGGAGAGCCGGTACGTGCAGAGGGTGGTCTACCGCTTCATCCAGAACACCAACTCCCTCCTGGTGGCCGTCCTGGGCGGGAGCATTGACGCCACCTCCAGCGTCTCCCTCACCTTTGACCAAGGCCGTAGCCGCCAGCTCACCTCCCGGGCCCCTGGCCGCTTTGACATCTGGTTCGTGCCCGGGGCCATCTGGGAGCACATTGACGTCAACAAGTTTGAGAACTGCCAGGCGGTCCGCGACTTGGGCCTGAACGACGTCCGCACCCGTCGGGCCCTCCTCCACGCTCTGAACCGCGAGGGGTTGGTCAAGGCCTTCTTTGACGGCCTCCAGCCCGTGGCCCACACCTGGATCGCCCCCGTCAACCCCCTCTTCAACCCCAATGTGCGGAAGTACGAGTTTGACCTGAAGAAGGCGGAGGCGCTCTTGGCGGAGATGGGCTGGAGGAAGGGGCCGGACGGCATCCTTCAGCGCACCGTGGGTGGCCGCACCGTGCGCTTTGAGATTGAGTTCGTCACCACCGCGGGCAACGCTATCCGGGAGCGCACCCAGCAGTTCTTCGCCGAGGACCTGAAGAAGATCGGCATCGCCGTCAAGATCAATAACGCCCCCAGCGCCGTGGTCTTCGCCGACGACTACATCCAGCGGGCCAGCGAGTGCAAGTGGACCGGGCTGTTTGAGTTCGCTTGGGTTTCCAACCTGGCCGAGGATGGCTCCCTCTTCCAGTACAAGAACCTGAACACCGGGGCCATCATGGTGCCCACCAAGGAGAACAACTACCAGGGGCAGAACATCGGCGGCTGGCGCAACGACGAGTTTGACCGTCTGACGAGCCAGGGTGTCCTGGAGTTTGACGAGGCCAGGCGGAAGCAGCTCTTCTGGAGGGCCCAGGAGATCTGGGCCGAGGAGCTGCCTGCCTTGCCCCTCTACTTCCGCGCTAACCCCTACGTGGTGCGGAAGGGCCTGGTCAACTACGTGGCCAGCGCTTACGCGGGCGGCTACGGTTACCCCGGCTGGAACGCTTGGGAGATCGGCTGGGAGAGCCGCGGCGCCGTGAAGAAGTGGGACCAGGCGAAGTACGCTCTTTCCGTCAAGTAA

In an embodiment of the invention, the polypeptide indentified herein isisolated from a culture of Thermus scotoductus strain SA-01, recoveredand purified. Exemplary procedures suitable for such recovery andpurification include column chromatographic methods and size exclusiontechniques of the type known and described in the art. In an embodimentthereof, the present invention provides for purification of the proteinto be achieved by nickel affinity column chromatography followed by gelfiltration. In an alternative embodiment thereof, the present inventionprovides for the protein to be purified by heat denaturation followed bygel filtration.

In an alternative embodiment, the polypeptide of SEQ ID No: 1 isproduced recombinantly by expressing the nucleotide sequence of SEQ IDNo: 2 encoding the polypeptide in a host cell. With the aid of anexpression vector, the nucleic acid molecules containing the nucleotidesequences of SEQ ID No: 2 may be transfected and expressed in a hostcell.

Thus the present invention also relates to vectors that include thenucleotide sequence of SEQ ID No: 2, host cells that are geneticallyengineered with one or more recombinant expression vectors, and theproduction of the polypeptide of SEQ ID No: 1 as indentified herein byrecombinant techniques as is well known in the art.

The present invention further provides a method for producing at leastone polypeptide, as indentified herein, that is responsible for thereduction of uranium (VI), in a source of uranium (VI), to uranium (IV),the method including the steps of:

-   -   a) transfecting the nucleic acid molecules of SEQ ID NO: 2 into        a host cell;    -   b) culturing the host cell so as to express the polypeptide of        SEQ ID NO: 1 in the host cell; and    -   c) optionally, isolating and purifying the polypeptide of SEQ ID        NO: 1.

Also according to the invention, there is provided a microorganismtransformed with a U (VI) resistant gene obtained from the host celldescribed above, or any U (VI) resistant functional part thereof.

For purposes of the present invention, uranium reductase activity isdetermined by measuring a decrease in hexavalent uranium. Uraniumreductase activity is measured spectrophotometrically using2-(5-bromo-2-pyrdulazo)-5-diethylaminophenol.

According to a third aspect thereof, the present invention provides aprocess for the bioremediation, or at least partial bioremediation, of asite contaminated with a source of U (VI), the process comprising thesteps of introducing an electron donor to the contaminated site in orderto stimulate the proliferation of Thermus scotoductus strain SA-01 toreduce the U (VI) in the source of U (VI) present therein, to U (IV), orthe step of removing environmental media from a U (VI) contaminated siteand introducing an electron donor to such environmental media for asufficient period of time so as to allow Thermus scotoductus strainSA-01 to reduce U (VI), in the source of U (VI) present therein, to U(IV).

In an embodiment of the instant invention, Thermos scotoductus strainSA-01 is derived from the Mponeng mine located on the north-western rimof the Witwatersrand Basin in the North West Province of South Africawhich mine is operated by Western Deep Levels, Inc., or fromenvironmental media obtained from this site.

For purposes of the present specification, the term “environmentalmedia” denotes solid and liquid wastes, soils, sediments, water bodies,or a combination of one or more thereof.

In an embodiment of the present invention, the source of U (VI) isselected from the group consisting of UO₂(CH₃COO)₂.2H₂O and UO₂(NO₃)₂.It will be appreciated that the source of uranium of the presentinvention is not limited to the foregoing and accordingly may be anysuitable source of hexavalent uranium.

In one embodiment of the present invention, reduction takes place underaerobic and/or anaerobic conditions. Preferably, reduction takes placeunder anaerobic conditions so as to prevent the reduced U (IV) frombeing oxidized to U (VI).

As mentioned herein before, the reduction of U (VI) to U (IV) isinitiated by an electron donor. It will be appreciated that the electrondonor may be any suitable electron donor of the type known and describedin the art. In one embodiment of the invention, the electron donor isselected from the group consisting of H₂, reduced quinone (in particularhydroquinone), acetate, lactate, citric acid, and pyruvate.

The aforesaid process can be employed for the bioremediation, or atleast partial bioremediation, of a site contaminated with a source ofhexavalent U that can be practiced in situ, ex situ, or both.

According to a fourth aspect thereof, the present invention provides forthe use of an isolated polypeptide of SEQ ID No: 1, as identified andcharacterized herein, in the reduction of uranium (VI), in a source ofuranium (VI), to uranium (IV).

Furthermore, the present invention provides for the use of Thermosscotoductus strain SA-01 in the bioremediation, or at least partialbioremediation, of a U (VI) contaminated site or of U (VI) contaminatedenvironmental media.

The invention provides further for the use of Thermos scotoductus strainSA-01 in the bioremediation, or at least partial bioremediation, of a U(VI) contaminated site or of U (VI) contaminated environmental media,wherein said Thermus scotoductus strain SA-01 is derived from the U (VI)contaminated site or the U (VI) contaminated environmental media that isto be remediated, or at least partially remediated.

Also according to the invention, there is provided the use of amicroorganism transformed with a U (VI) resistant gene obtained from thehost cell described above, or any U (VI) resistant functional partthereof, in the bioremediation, or at least partial bioremediation, of aU (VI) contaminated site or of U (VI) contaminated environmental media.

These and other objects, features and advantages of the invention willbecome apparent to those skilled in the art following the detaileddescription of the invention.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1: is a graph depicting growth curves for Thermus scotoductus indifferent concentrations of uranium. TYG medium (▪) amended with 0.25 mM(▴), 0.5 mM (▾), 0.75 mM (♦), 1.0 mM (), 1.25 mM (□) and 1.5 mM (Δ)U(VI) during inoculation (t=0);

FIG. 2: is a graph depicting a standard curve of the optical densityreading of the specific diluted uranium sample vs the known U (VI)concentration for the specific diluted uranium sample;

FIG. 3: is a graph showing the reduction of uranium (VI) by T.scotoductus SA-01 under non-growth conditions. Cells harvested in lateexponential phase with assay solution containing 0.25 mM U(VI) and 10 mMlactate as electron donor (▪), control assay solution of cells harvestedin late exponential phase containing 0.25 mM U(VI) and no electron donor(▴), cells harvested in early exponential phase with assay solutioncontaining 0.25 mM U(VI) and 10 mM lactate as electron donor (▾),control assay solution of cells harvested in early exponential phasecontaining 0.25 mM U(VI) and no electron donor (♦), cells harvested inlate exponential phase with assay solution containing 0.25 mM U(VI) and10% hydrogen as electron donor (), control assay solution withautoclaved cells with no electron donor (□), control assay solutionlacking cells with 10 mM lactate (Δ) and 10% hydrogen (∇) as electrondonors;

FIG. 4: is a graph depicting uranium (VI) reduction activity of thecombination of the membrane and periplasmic fractions from T.scotoductus SA-01 after dialysis and being purged with 10% H₂ gas andhydroquinone as electron donors;

FIG. 5: is a graph depicting an elusion profile for Super-Q Toyopearlpertaining to uranium (VI) reduction activity;

FIG. 6: is a graph depicting an elusion profile for SP Toyopearlpertaining to uranium (VI) reduction activity;

FIG. 7: is a SDS-PAGE gel analysis depicting the isolated uraniumreductase protein;

FIG. 8: is a graph depicting the reduction of uranium (VI) at differentpH values. pH values (▪) 5.5, (▴) 6.0, (▾) 6.5, (Δ) pH 7.0, (♦) 5.5protein free control, () pH 6.0 protein free control, (□) pH 6.5protein free control, (∇) pH 7.0 protein free control;

FIG. 9: is a graph depicting the reduction of uranium (VI) at differentpH values. pH values (▴) 7.5, (▪) 8.0, (▾) 8.5, (□) 9.0, (□) pH 7.5protein free control, () pH 8.0 protein free control, (Δ) pH 8.5protein free control, (∇) pH 9.0 protein free control; and

FIG. 10: is a graph depicting the reduction of uranium (VI) at 55° C.(▪) and 65° C. (▴) with the blank rate subtracted.

The presently disclosed subject matter will now be described more fullyhereinafter with reference to the accompanying Examples, in whichrepresentative embodiments are shown. The presently disclosed subjectmatter can, however, be embodied in different forms and should not beconstrued as limited to the embodiments set forth herein. Rather, theseembodiments are provided so that this disclosure will be thorough andcomplete, and will fully convey the scope of the embodiments to thoseskilled in the art.

EXAMPLES

The invention was performed in accordance with the following steps.

Growth of Thermus scotoductus SA-01

The thermophilic bacterium, Thermus scotoductus strain SA-01, employedherein, was isolated in 1999 by Kieft et al. from groundwater sampled ata depth of approximately 3.2 km in the Mponeng gold mine which islocated on the north-western rim of the Witwatersrand Basin in the NorthWest Province of South Africa operated by Western Deep Levels, Inc.

Thermus scotoductus SA-01, deposited under ATCC Accession No. 700910;American Type Culture Collection, was plated out from a glycerol stockon solid TYG medium and allowed to grow for 24 hours at 65° C. This wasthen replated again on solid TYG medium and allowed to grow for 24 hoursat 65° C. A pre-inocculum was then prepared by inoculating a loop ofgrowth from the plate in 50 ml of liquid TYG medium. This was grown for8 hours at 65° C. after which 10 ml of growth was transferred to 90 mlof liquid TYG medium. This was then grown for 8 hours at 65° C. afterwhich 5 ml of growth was transferred to 95 ml of liquid TYG medium.

8 hours was determined beforehand to be the time needed for the organismto grow to the late exponential phase.

As can be seen from FIG. 1, Thermus scotoductus SA-01 has the ability togrow in uranium concentrations of up to 1.25 mM. However, as can furtherbe seen from said Figure, an increase in the concentration of uraniumabove 1.25 mM leads to a decrease in the ability of Thermus scotoductusSA-01 to grow effectively.

Spectrophotometric Determination of U (VI)

All reagents were of analytical reagent grade. Deionized distilled waterwas used for the preparation of standard solutions. 100 mM was preparedby dissolving UO₂(CH₃COO)₂.2H₂O in water. The prepared solution wasstored in the dark and used for sequential dilution. 5-Br-PADAP was usedto prepare a 0.05% solution by dissolving the reagent in ethanol. Thecomplexing ligand solution (pH 7.8) was prepared by dissolving 1 g ofNaF and 13 g of sulphosalicyclic acid in 40 ml water, the pH was thenadjusted with NaOH and the solution was diluted to 100 ml. The buffersolution (pH 7.8) was prepared by diluting 14 g of TEA in 80 ml ofwater, the pH was then adjusted with perchloric acid, and the solutionwas left to stand overnight. Before use, the pH of the buffer solutionwas adjusted to 7.8 with perchloric acid and the solution diluted to 100ml. All optical density measurements were made on a Spectronic® Genesys™5 at 600 nm (Johnson and Florence, 1971).

U (VI) dilutions were made by diluting the stock solution with water.100 μl of the U (VI) dilution was taken in a 1.5 ml eppendorf tubecontaining 25 μl of complexing solution. To the above, the 100 μl of thebuffer solution and 80 μl of Br-PADAP solution was added and made upwith 620 μl ethanol and 75 μl water. This coloured solution was allowedto stand for about 2 h and absorbance was measured at 578 nm against areagent blank (Johnson and Florence, 1971).

A standard curve was constructed, as depicted in FIG. 2, by plotting theoptical density reading of the specific diluted sample vs the known U(VI) concentration for the specific diluted sample.

U (Vi) Reduction by Thermus scotoductus SA-01 Under Non-GrowthConditions

T. scotoductus SA-01 cells were harvested from growth standardizedinoculum. The cells were washed three times with 20 mM Tris-HCl buffer,pH 7.0, and the cell suspension purged with O₂-free N₂. To initiate theassay, a sample of the culture was added to a tube containing the assaysolution (uranyl acetate in Tris-HCl buffer, pH 7.0, plus Na lactate aselectron donor) to a final concentration of 0.25 mM U (VI) and 10 mMelectron donor and subjected to analysis as described below. This wasall done in an anaerobic chamber to prevent reduced U (IV) from beingoxidized to U (VI). Along with the cell-free control, an electron donorfree control was also prepared.

Uranium reductase activity was determined by measuring the decrease ofhexavalent uranium. U (VI) was analyzed spectrophotometrically using2-(5-bromo-2-pyrdulazo)-5-diethylaminophenol (Johnson and Florence,1971).

When Thermus SA-01 is incubated anaerobically with U (VI), U (IV) willprecipitate out of solution as indicated by a black precipitate (Haasand Northop, 2004) formed in the cell pellet. Most of the uranium (VI)was transformed to U (IV) in under 20 hours, as can be seen in FIG. 3,which coincides with what was previously described in literature (Kieftet al., 1999).

It was observed that even without an electron donor, the cells werestill able to reduce the hexavalent uranium. No chemical reduction wasobserved in the cellfree control indicating that the reduction has to bedue to cellular activity.

After the experiment was completed, the cells used were exposed tooxygen overnight which led to the disappearance of the blackprecipitate. Uranium (VI) determination was also done after the exposureto air and it was found that most of the U (IV) in the sample wasoxidized to U (VI). This indicates that the reduction of U (VI) to U(IV) occurred since if uranium complexes, for instance U (VI)phosphate-type complexes, were formed by bioprecipitation orbioaccumulation, it would not have resulted in the reappearance of U(VI) under aerobic conditions.

Uranium (VI) Reduction with Different Electron Donors

To determine the most effective electron donor for whole cell uranium(VI) reduction, various reduction assays were performed with electrondonors determined to be most relevant. In this regard, H₂, reducedquinone (particularly hydroquinone), acetate, lactate, citric acid, andpyruvate were employed. It was observed that whilst each electron donoris capable of producing a set amount of reducing equivalents (someelectron donors more than others), uranium (VI) reduction is notdirectly coupled to the produced reducing equivalents. Accordingly, itcan be concluded that the specific electron donor does not have anysignificant effect on uranium (VI) reduction.

Uranium (VI) Reduction at Different pH and Temperature Values

Whole cell uranium (VI) reduction under non-growth conditions wasperformed over a pH range of 5 to 9. The whole cell uranium (VI)reduction activity seemed to prefer a more neutral pH with maximumactivity being observed at a pH of between 7 and 8. Very low reactionrates were observed at pH values below 7. Since all appropriate controlswere evaluated, this might be due to the fact that the assay does notfunction in this pH region.

The optimum temperature for whole cell uranium (VI) reduction wasdetermined over a range of 35° C. to 75° C. It was observed thattemperature did not seem to have any significant effect on whole cellreduction.

Preparation of Subcellular Fractions

Subcellular fractions were prepared as described by Kaufmann and Lovley(2001). T. scotoductus SA-01 cells were harvested from growthstandardized inoculum at 8 h of growth and washed three times with 50 mMTris-HCl buffer, pH 7.8. Cells were then resuspended in 50 mM Tris-HClbuffer, pH 7.8, containing 25% (w/v) sucrose. To accomplish cell walllysis, lysozyme (20 mg) was added to the cell suspension (approximately1 g wet weight) and stirred for 20 min at 37° C. Na₂-EDTA was added to afinal concentration of 5 mM and stirred for another 15 min at 37° C.Finally MgCl₂ was added to a final concentration of 13 mM and thesuspension was stirred for 15 min at 37° C. Separation of thespheroplast from the periplasmic fractions was obtained bycentrifugation (20 000×g, 30 min). Spheroplasts were resuspended in 50mM Tris-HCl buffer, pH 7.8.

To obtain the membrane and cytoplasmic fraction, the protocol asdescribed by Gaspard et al., (1998), was used. DNAse and RNAse was addedto final concentrations of 5 μg/ml and 10 μg/ml respectively as well asprotease inhibitors and the cells were broken by ultrasonic treatment (3times, 75 W, 5 min) with a sonifier (Branson Sonic Power Cell DisruptorB-30) in an ice-water bath. The suspension was then centrifuged (4000×g,10 min) at 4° C. to remove cellular debris. To separate the membranefraction from the cytoplasmic fraction, the supernatant was centrifuged(100 000×g, 90 min). The pellet was resuspended in 50 mM Tris-HClbuffer, pH 7.8.

The membrane, periplasmic and cytoplasmic fractions were all dialysedagainst 20 mM MOPS buffer, pH 7.0, with Snakeskin®Pleated DialysisTubing (10 000 MWCO) at 4° C. with 3×2 L buffer changes.

Determination of U (VI) Reduction Activity in Subcellar Fractions WithH₂ and Reduced Quinones as Electron Donors

The periplasmic and membrane fractions were subjected to uranium (VI)reduction experimentation as described above with the exception that thefractions were purged with O₂-free N₂/H₂/CO₂ (90%/10%/10%) mixed gas andsupplemented with 2 mM hydroquinone to introduce 10% H₂ and reducedquinones as electron donors. To initiate the assay, uranyl acetate wasadded to a sample of the fraction to a final concentration of 0.25 mM U(VI) and subjected to analysis. This was all done in an anaerobicchamber to prevent reduced U (IV) from being oxidized to U (VI).

The combination of the periplasm and membrane fractions was screened forU (VI) reduction activity, since this combination has shown the mostpromise pertaining to the presence of the uranium reductase.Hydroquinone and H₂ were utilized as electron donors as these are theelectron donors preferred from literature for this type of protein.

A graph was then constructed, as shown in FIG. 4, depicting uranium (VI)reduction activity of the combination of the membrane and periplasmicfractions from T. scotoductus SA-01, after dialysis and being purgedwith 10% H₂ gas and hydroquinone as electron donors.

As can be seen from FIG. 4, a combination of the H₂ and reduced quinonesdelivered the best reduction activity. Furthermore, a blackish-yellowprecipitate was formed. Since it has been shown that proteins in theperiplasm precipitates out a yellow U (VI) precipitate, it is nosurprise that the formed precipitate was not completely black.

Optimization of the Method for the Isolation of the Protein of Interestby Chromatographic Methods Extraction of Ionically Bound MembraneProteins

The membrane pellet was resuspended in 20 mM MOPS buffer, pH 7.0, bystirring overnight at 5° C. The volume of the membrane fraction wasdoubled with 1 M KCl in 20 mM MOPS buffer, pH 7.0. The solution was thenstirred for 2 h at room temperature to extract the peripheral membraneproteins and the resulting suspension was ultra-centrifuged at 100 000×gfor 90 min at 4° C. to pellet the membrane. The KCl extractable membranefraction (the supernatant from the centrifugation step) was dialyzedagainst a 20 mM MOPS buffer pH 7.0 at 5° C. with 3×2 L buffer changes.

Isolation of the Membrane/Periplasmic Fractions

The dialyzed KCl extracted membrane fraction in combination with theperiplasmic fraction was applied to a Super-Q Toyopearl (8 cm×2.8 cm)column previously equilibrated with 20 mM MOPS buffer, pH 7.0. Thecolumns were washed with 20 mM MOPS buffer, pH 7.0, until the A_(280 nm)readings were less than 0.01. A salt gradient of 0-1.0 M NaCl at a flowrate of 5 ml/min was used to elute proteins.

Fractions determined to be active for uranium (VI) reduction activitywere pooled and dialyzed against 20 mM MOPS buffer, pH 7.0, withSnakeskin®Pleated Dialysis Tubing (10 000 MWCO) at 4° C.

A graph depicting the elusion profile for the Super-Q Toyopearl was thenconstructed, as shown in FIG. 5. The circled peaks in said Figureindicate the produced uranium (VI) reduction activity. The circled peakswere pooled and applied to the SP Toyopearl after dialysis.

The dialysate was applied to a SP Toyopearl (8 cm×2.8 cm) columnpreviously equilibrated with 20 mM MOPS buffer, pH 7.0. The column waswashed with 20 mM MOPS buffer, pH 7.0, until the A_(280 nm) readingswere less than 0.01. A salt gradient of 0-1.0 M NaCl at a flow rate of 5ml/min was used to elute proteins. Selected fractions were collected (10ml) and tested for uranium (VI) reduction activity.

A graph depicting the elusion profile for the SP Toyopearl wasthereafter constructed, as shown in FIG. 6. Arrow A represents fraction11, arrow B represents fraction 16, arrow C represents fraction 19, andarrow D represents fraction 33. From this Figure, it can be seen thatfractions 16, 19 and 33 indicate uranium (VI) reduction activity.

SDS-PAGE gel analysis was done on the selected fractions fromchromatographic separation on the SP Toyopearl resin. As shown in FIG.7, lane M represents the molecular mass marker proteins; lane 1represents fraction 11; lane 2 represents fraction 16; lane 3 representsfraction 19; whilst lane 4 represents fraction 33. Accordingly, theresulting SDS-PAGE gel analysis indicated that the only protein presentin all three of these fractions was the +/−70 kDa protein.

Sequence Determination of Unknown Protein N-Terminal Sequencing

Fraction 19 was loaded onto a 10% SDS PAGE gel and run at 100V. Afterthe run was completed the gel was blotted onto a PVDF membrane accordingto the manufacturer's specification. The blotted membrane was thenstained with Coomassie Brilliant Blue and the band of interest was cutout and sent for sequencing.

The results obtained revealed that the N terminal sequence is XPXDNSLVIG

BLASTP analysis in the NCBI web using the “DNSLVIG” sequence resulted in100% identity with the following:

-   -   (i) a dipeptide-binding protein from Thermus thermophilus HB27;    -   (ii) an extracellular solute-binding protein family 5 (ABC-type        dipeptide transport protein) from T. aquaticus Y51 MC23; and    -   (iii) an oligopeptide binding protein from T. thermophilus Hhb8.

All of these proteins were identical in sequence.

The sequences from the proteins obtained from NCBI BLASTP analysis wereblasted against the Thermus scotoductus SA-01 draft genome and resultedin 100% identity with a peptide ABC transporter protein, peptide bindingprotein. Also a BLASTP analysis of the N terminal sequence against thedraft genome sequence of Thermus scotoductus SA-01 resulted in 100%identity with a peptide ABC transporter, peptide-binding protein.

Therefore, XPXDNSLVIG represents the first residues of the maturesequence of the protein. After the BLASTP analysis, it can be deducedfrom the chromatogram of the N-terminal sequencing that the first aminoacid corresponds to G and the third residue corresponds to Q.

In view of the foregoing, it was deduced that the N-terminal sequence isGPQDNSLVIG

From the aforesaid, it can be concluded that the protein involved inuranium reduction is the peptide ABC transporter, peptide-bindingprotein. It can also be concluded that said protein moonlights asuranium reductase.

MS/MS Sequencing

Fraction 19 was loaded onto a 10% SDS PAGE gel and run at 100 V. Afterthe run was completed, the gel band for the +/−70 kDa protein was cutout and freeze dried. The freeze dried sample was then sent to theCentre for Proteomic and Genomic Research in Cape Town for MS/MSanalysis. A total of nine tryptic digested fragment spectra wereobtained which was analyzed using the Mascot Distiller software.

Four of the spectra could then be also annotated to the peptide ABCtransporter, peptide-binding protein.

The aforegoing therefore serves to verify that the protein in questionis the peptide ABC transporter, peptide-binding protein.

Protein Expression and Purification

Vectors pET28, containing the sequence for the peptide ABC transporter,peptide-binding protein were constructed using methods known in the art.pET28 contains the sequence for attaching a histidine rich area to theN-terminus of the protein, thus enabling the protein to be purified witha nickel affinity column.

ABC/pET28 was then transformed into Rosetta-Gami 2(DE3)pLysS competentcells and inoculated into a LB medium containing an antibiotic, KAN forpET28. The cells were then cultured and grown to an OD of between0.8-1.0 and protein expression was induced with the addition of 1 mM(final concentration) IPTG.

Four hours after induction, the cells were harvested and washed. Thecells were broken by passage through a French pressure cell and thecytoplasmic fraction was harvested by ultracentrifugation (100 000×g, 4°C., 90′). The resultant protein from pET28 was then purified by a nickelaffinity column followed by a gel filtration step.

Characterization of the Recombinant ABC Proteins

The recombinant protein was evaluated for the ability to reduce uranium(VI). The recombinant protein was characterized using the samephysio-chemical parameters as used for characterizing the whole cells.

In order to demonstrate that the disulphide bond, present in theprotein, provides a nucleation site for U (VI) reduction, a reducingagent needed to be applied in order to reduce the thiol moeity. Out ofthe possible reducing agents, namely dithiothreitol, sodium dithioniteand β-mercaptoethanol that were assayed with uranium (VI),β-mercaptoethanol produced the lowest level of chemical reduction ofuranium (VI).

An excess of β-mercaptoethanol was thus utilized to reduce the disulfidebond present in the protein before experimentation.

Generation of Cysteine Mutants of the Peptide ABC Transporter,Peptide-Binding Protein

A homology model of the ABC transporter peptide-binding protein of T.scotoductus SA-01 was compiled using Yasara Structure & Whatif. Thetemplate used was the oligopeptide-binding protein of T. thermophilusHB8 (2D5W-B) which has a 90% identity (95% similarity) with the ABCtransporter, peptide-binding protein of T. scotoductus SA-01.

Modelling of the protein revealed a disulphide bond which is present onthe exterior of the protein, thereby supplying a possible nucleationsite for U (VI) reduction once the bond has been reduced by the additionof a reducing agent such as β-mercaptoethanol.

The cysteine residues responsible for this bond are located at positions337 and 481. Therefore, to probe the role of the cysteine residues in U(VI) reduction, the cysteine residues were each mutated to alanines bysite-directed mutagenesis. A combination of both the two cysteinemutants was also devised.

The mutant proteins were thereafter purified using Ni-NTA affinitychromatography and were found to have greater than 98% purity onCoomassie-stained gels.

Other proteins with cysteine thiol-disulfide bridges have shown theability to reduce U (VI), such as a thioredoxin from Desulfovibriodesulfuricans strain G20 (Li and Krumholtz, 2009).

U (VI) reduction by the cysteine mutants was thereafter performed inreactions containing 320 μg/ml of protein at pH 7 and 65° C.

Participation of the Cysteine Residues in Enzymatic Activity

Both the Cys-337 and Cys-481 mutants showed very little or negligibleactivity when compared to the wild-type. Also, the double mutant showedno significant activity. The results of these assays clearly indicatethat Cys-337 and Cys-481 are required for U (VI) reduction.

The Effect of pH on Uranium (VI) Reduction

In essence, reduction performed with a reduced disulfide bond can beseen as reduction by hydrogen sulphide. Hua and coworkers (2006)observed that the reduction of uranium (VI) by hydrogen sulphidehappened optimally at neutral pH values and could best be represented bythe following equation:

UO₂ ²⁺+HS⁻=UO₂+S⁰+H⁺ (Hua et al., 2006)

The highest rate of reduction can be observed for pH values between 7and 8 (FIGS. 8 and 9), which coincides with what was observed inliterature for sulphide reduction (Hua et al., 2006). At pH values below7 and above 8, the rate of chemical reduction of uranium (VI) byβ-mercaptoethanol in the samples lacking protein are very high. Thismight be due to pH inhibition of the reduction of the disulphide bond,producing increasing amounts of β-mercaptoethanol which are free toreduce the uranium (VI).

The Effect of Temperature on Uranium (VI) Reduction

The highest rate of reduction can be observed for temperature valuesbetween 55° C. and 65° C. (FIG. 10), coinciding with the optimal growthtemperature for the organism (Kieft et al., 1999). At temperatures below45° C., almost no activity was observed and above 65° C. the rates ofchemical reduction of uranium (VI) by β-mercaptoethanol in the sampleslacking protein were very high.

REFERENCES

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1-20. (canceled)
 21. An isolated polypeptide derived from Thermusscotoductus strain SA-01 that is responsible for the reduction ofuranium (VI), in a source of uranium (VI), to uranium (IV), wherein thepolypeptide comprises the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID No:
 1. 22. Thepolypeptide according to claim 21, wherein the polypeptide is ahomogenous protein, having a molecular mass of 70 kDa, as shown bySDS-PAGE gel analysis.
 23. The polypeptide according to claim 21,wherein the polypeptide is a peptide ABC transporter, peptide-bindingprotein, as revealed by NCBI BLASTP analysis.
 24. The polypeptideaccording to claim 21, wherein the source of U (VI) is selected from thegroup consisting of UO₂(CH₃COO)₂.2H₂O and UO₂(NO₃)₂.
 25. An isolatednucleic acid molecule coding for the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID No:1, or an isolated nucleic acid molecule comprising a nucleotide sequenceof SEQ ID No:
 2. 26. A vector comprising a nucleic acid moleculeaccording to claim
 25. 27. A host cell comprising the vector accordingto claim
 26. 28. A method for producing at least one polypeptide, thatis responsible for the reduction of uranium (VI), in a source of uranium(VI), to uranium (IV), the method including the steps of: a)transfecting a host cell with a nucleic acid molecule according to claim25; b) culturing the host cell so as to express a polypeptide of SEQ IDNO: 1 in the host cell; and c) optionally, isolating and purifying thepolypeptide of SEQ ID NO:
 1. 29. A microorganism transformed with anucleic acid molecule according to claim
 25. 30. A process for thebioremediation, or at least partial bioremediation, of a sitecontaminated with a source of U (VI), the process comprising the stepsof introducing an electron donor to the contaminated site in order tostimulate the proliferation of Thermus scotoductus strain SA-01 toreduce the U (VI), in the source of U (VI) present therein, to U (IV);or the step of removing environmental media from a U (VI) contaminatedsite and introducing an electron donor to such environmental media for asufficient period of time so as to allow Thermus scotoductus strainSA-01 to reduce U (VI), in the source of U (VI) present therein, to U(IV).
 31. The process according to claim 30, wherein the Thermusscotoductus strain SA-01 is derived from the Mponeng mine located on thenorth-western rim of the Witwatersrand Basin in the North West Provinceof South Africa or from environmental media obtained from this site. 32.The process according to claim 30, wherein the source of U (VI) isselected from the group consisting of UO₂(CH₃COO)₂.2H₂O and UO₂(NO₃)₂.33. The process according to claim 30, wherein reduction takes placeunder aerobic conditions.
 34. The process according to claim 30, whereinthe electron donor is selected from the group consisting of H₂, reducedquinone (hydroquinone), acetate, lactate, citric acid, and pyruvate. 35.The process according to claim 30, wherein the process is employed forthe bioremediation, or at least partial bioremediation, of a sitecontaminated with a source of hexavalent U that can be practiced insitu, ex situ, or both.
 36. Use of a polypeptide according to claim 21in the reduction of uranium (VI), in a source of uranium (VI), touranium (IV).
 37. Use of Thermus scotoductus strain SA-01 in thebioremediation, or at least partial bioremediation, of a U (VI)contaminated site or of U (VI) contaminated environmental media.
 38. Useof Thermus scotoductus strain SA-01 according to claim 37, wherein saidThermus scotoductus strain SA-01 is derived from the U (VI) contaminatedsite or the U (VI) contaminated environmental media that is to beremediated, or at least partially remediated.
 39. Use of a microorganismaccording to claim 29 in the bioremediation, or at least partialbioremediation, of a U (VI) contaminated site or of U (VI) contaminatedenvironmental media.